IL Recruiting Invitational Spotlight: Titanium Lacrosse

The IL Recruiting Invitational is an opportunity for players to get seen, make a name for themselves and leave their mark. IL will be spotlighting each participating club leading up to the event July 21-23 at Goucher College in Towson, Md. Check the homepage of InsideLacrosse.com for scores, photos and more during #ILInvite. Get the event schedule here and follow @ILInvitational on Twitter.

Titanium will be showcasing some of the Midwest’s best talent at the Inside Lacrosse Recruiting Invitational. Founded by AJ Auld, Titanium’s success has been concurrent with the growth of the game in America’s heartland, and has increasingly sent players to the Division I level, including Denver's Joe Bano and North Carolina’s Zach Powers.

Kevin Boland, a three-time All-American midfielder at Johns Hopkins and former MLL player, is the director of the clubs player development and recruiting.

“For us, our main goal is for our kids to get better,” said Boland on Titanium’s objectives at the IL Invite. “Obviously, there’s going to be a lot of attention. There will probably be a lot of college coaches there. But the main thing we are trying to get out of it is for our guys to develop as players and get better and for them to get some exposure at the same time.”

Titanium’s style of play centers around ball movement rather than individual dodging.

“We want to move the ball,” said Boland. “We don’t play a style of offense that highlights one player. We want to play as a team. We run a hybrid style offense. Lot of picking, a lot of off ball screening. Pick and rolls, cutting, and stuff like that. We want all our goals to be assisted if we can.”

But Boland attributes a lot of Titanium’s success on the field and on the recruiting trail to the team’s tenacity.

“A lot of our guys are just tough and gritty,” said Boland “I tell our guys all the time that the only thing we care about when we go to these events is that the guys play as hard as they can and compete every time they step on the field. When you commit to doing that, all the other stuff like recruiting and exposure takes care of itself.”

The Midwest 2017 group will bring a few players looking for exposure. Getting the team to mesh may prove a challenge however, as the IL invite will be the first tournament that Titanium’s 2017 elite group will be playing together. The players are drawn from Titanium’s teams that are grouped by state.

One player looking to impress will be Kaleb Boyl, a long-stick midfielder from Carmel High in Indiana. Boyl excels on the wings and in transition. He also plays ice hockey, and this contributes to his high degree of athleticism.

On attack, Tommy Nook will be looking to have a good tournament. Nook is described as a great shooter, but also as an athletic attackman who can run between the lines if need be.

Clayton Krol, a midfielder from Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh, is also a prospect to look after. A big, strong player, Krol is a hard working midfielder who excels at scooping up groundballs. Displaying similar qualities as a middie is Jake Formento from Illinois. All these players are looking for a big push of exposure at the IL Invite.

“All those guys are uncommitted,” said Boland. “But they are all right on the cusp of taking that next step with their recruiting.”